The Real Betis visit this Sunday to Elche in the stadium Martinez Valero, where he has never managed to win a First Division match, since his last victory in Elche's field in the highest category dates back to October 26, 1975, when the franjiverdes played their matches at the stadium of Altabix, demolished in 1981 and where he was playing until September 8, 1976 when the current stadium was inaugurated.
The last time Betis beat Elche at home in Primera (2-3) Rubén Cano played with the locals and Julio Cardeñosa did it with the Betis. Both would be protagonists a couple of years later – already with Rubén Cano at Atlético -, on November 30, 1977, of the play that qualified Spain for the 1978 World Cup in Argentina at the Little Maracana in Belgrade, where the national team Coached by Kubala, she beat Yugoslavia 0-1 with a goal from the Argentine through a pass from Valladolid. That match, known as the 'Battle of Belgrade', and from which Juanito came out on a stretcher after receiving a bottle hit on the head, was a milestone at the time, since Spain had been left out of the two previous World Cups, that of Germany'74 (Yugoslavia qualified in the tiebreaker match) and Mexico'70 (Belgium qualified ahead of Yugoslavia, Spain and Finland).
Real Betis have only won in 4 of their 25 visits to the Elche field in all competitions: they won three times in Primera (1959/60, 1962/63 and 1975/76) -all in Altabix- and once in Segunda (2010 / 11), while in the Spanish Cup he only reaped two draws and two defeats the four times he played. Since that 2-3 victory in 1975 (the two goals for Elche were made by Gómez Voglino and by Betis he scored two Anzarda and another Benítez) Betis has only managed to win in one of the twelve subsequent visits, all already at the Martínez stadium. Valero, from which he only emerged victorious on September 11, 2010, by winning 0-2 in a match of the 3rd round of the Second Division, with Pepe Bordalás on the local bench and Pepe Mel on the verdiblanco. Rubén Castro (56 ') and Beñat (89') scored and Betis played the final minutes with one less due to an expulsion of Nacho (85 ').
In total, Elche and Betis have met 25 times in Elche's field, with 10 victories for the locals, 11 draws and 4 victories for Betis. Counting only the games played at the Martínez Valero, the balance is one Betis victories, five Elche victories and six draws in twelve games.